1. Field of the Disclosure
This disclosure relates generally to systems and methods for depositing a material on a substrate, such as a printed circuit board, and more particularly to an apparatus and a method for depositing viscous materials, such as solder paste, epoxies, underfill materials, encapsulants, and other assembly materials, on electronic substrates.
2. Discussion of Related Art
There are several types of prior art dispensing systems used for dispensing precise amounts of liquid or paste for a variety of applications. One such application is the assembly of integrated circuit chips and other electronic components onto circuit board substrates. In this application, automated dispensing systems are used for dispensing very small amounts, or dots, of viscous material onto a circuit board. The viscous material may include liquid epoxy or solder paste, or some other related material.
One challenge facing operators of such dispensing systems is the ability to sufficiently clean nozzles or needles of the dispensing heads from which material exits. This challenge is made more difficult by the inclusion of multiple nozzles and the continuous drive to lowering cycle time for circuit board assembly process.